Pattern Testing - Ainslee Fox for One Thimble - Big Day Out Jacket

Hi Everyone,

You all need to get excited about the impending release of One Thimble Issue 17 this coming Friday! It is JAM PACKED with so much goodness! 14 PDF patterns - yes, 14!!! and The Big Day Out Jacket by Ainslee Fox is one of them!

When Jen from Ainslee Fox and One Thimble first mentioned the name of the jacket to me, I had a little giggle to myself, remembering year after year where my friends and I would trudge off to the Big Day out to spend a whole day indulging in live music, festival fun and of course lots of mud games - inevitably it would rain, we'd all get wet and stomp around in mud and spirits were always high! So, before I'd even sewn up this jacket, I already felt quite a strong bond with it. And of course, this is how cool I looked when I went....right...

My first took me quite a while, there are a lot of small parts to piece together and top stitch and of course you have to factor in a couple of extra hours for that "new pattern" learning period and I had both my kids home that day! 

It's not a quick sew - but it has been the most rewarding sew for me since the Hourglass Dress from Rabbit Rabbit Creations (which I LOVE)

I paired it with the Ainslee Fox Scuttle Shorts from Issue 16 and the LilLuxe AlleyCat Leotard for an insanely cute little outfit that my 5yo got complimented on several times!

I had this awesome pineapple denim which in my head was going to suit the summery theme perfectly, I may have gotten a little teary when I was 10cm short.... so I took myself off to Spotlight to find an alternative. I came across this gorgeous watermelon drill and all was well with the world!

It's all in the detail, really. From the hidden welt side pockets to the functional top pockets, it's the little details of this pattern that will amaze you!

I had also bought this divine floral stretch denim from the Remnant Warehouse previously, and it was a perfect match for this jacket!

I paired it here with the Peach Patterns Pearlie Dress from issue 16 of One Thimble, made with a soft and rather luscious jersey from Spotlight.

We tried for some beach photos, Sydney weather had other plans and we go rained on! So, back to my desk it was!

You'll need to set aside some time to do this properly, I made my first with constant kid interruptions and it definitely doubled my time. My second and third were pretty quick - considering it's not a quick project - all that top stitching takes time - don't let that deter you though, if you can work on it in bits and pieces you will feel so satisfied once it’s done that you've made such a wonderful wardrobe staple!

I mean, seriously, I never expected to be able to say "I made a denim jacket" ever....

What will your first OT17 sew be?

Happy Sewing

T x

Leotards anyone?

My youngest started gymnastics a few weeks ago and I thought to myself "I really should attempt to make her a leotard" During a recent sale I had bought the Lil Luxe Alley Cat Leotard pattern and so I set out to make a leotard... and so began a new obsession!

I started off using some jersey I had bought at Spotlight and made a muslin - however it's become one of her most worn items of clothing - winning! I adjusted the pattern instructions to suit my laziness. I did not want to line it so I just left that bit out and used my overstitch to hem the neck/back line and it's made no difference to the fit or style of the pattern.

She's wearing it here with the Leon Shorts by Papillion and Mandarine I have three favourite shorts patterns, this is one of the 3.

As you can see here, another modification I made was to add leg bands instead of elastic at the legs - I simply didn't have the width elastic required handy, so I used the elastic length to cut the leg band and made it 1.5" wide (I changed this to 2" wide on later makes) and then i ended up making leg bands for all the rest as I thought it was pretty cute that way.

Then of course, big sister wanted one too!

Leotard fabric:  Organic Pink Spots fabric by Tadah, Shorts Fabric from Spotlight

How could I refuse?! I mean how cute is she!!! Here she is wearing them with the Ainslee Fox Scuttle Shorts from Issue 16 of One Thimble - one of my other favourite shorts patterns.

Leotard Fabric: Stripes B&W Organic Knit by Tadah, Shorts Fabric: Denim Look Oeko-Tex100 by Wicked Fabrics

Leotard Fabric: Raspberry Creek Watercolour from SEMS Fabrics and Shorts Fabric: Denim Look by Wicked Fabrics

She did eventually wear one to gymnastics... but I have to admit both my girls have mainly been wearing them as bodysuits under their shorts or skirts as a fashion item! 

I've got a couple more of these cut out to make up for my nieces who arrive from Japan next month for a holiday! I hope they will love them as much as my girls do!

Happy sewing

T xx

Pattern Testing - Bubby and Me Taylah Skirt

I enjoy pattern testing, and you can always tell when I love what I’m making - I obsessively make more than the one I was required to test! 

The latest offering from Bubby and Me Creations the Taylah Skirt is one I’ve made obsessively! It’s a style I love, it suits my kids and it’s super quick to make!

It ranges from sizes 1-10 and has a pleated or gathered skirt option. It can be made in woven or knit and also has instructions for an adjustable waistband.

Feast your eyes on his cuteness!

Let’s start with the woven, gathered skirt option




This is the woven, pleated skirt option

This is the knit pleated skirt version

This is the knit gathered skirt option, for this one I used some gorgeous Bubby and Me Fabric it's on pre-order at the moment, so lets hope there is some retail left over for those of you who may have missed out!

Andddddd if you check out Nikki's blog, you will see a post on how to add shorts to your knit skirt for active little girls!

This option has definitely been my 3yo's favourite - she walks around telling random people that they can't see her bumbum anymore....

I hope you all love this pattern as much as I do, thanks for stopping by and Happy Sewing

T xx

Beach Ready!!

As we head into summer down under in Australia, I’ve been stockpiling my girls beach wardrobes with swimmers. Actually, I’ve been obsessively stockpiling... 

A few months ago, Made for Mermaids released their Mermaid Shores collection of delightfully cute girls swimmers and I’ve been sewing through all three of the styles they offer. 

I’ll start with Calypso, a cute flouncy two piece set. I used just the long flounce option to make mine. And cahhhhute 😍

Then, I moved on to try the Lainey pattern, which was perfect for my girls swim classes 

And then I tried out the Camilla, which is a 1 piece with side rouching and a flounce - LOVE! 

And if those weren’t enough, I decided to use the Calypso top with the Lainey bottoms because when I tried the Calypso bottoms on my pot bellied 3 yo, they just didn’t suit her at all. And this is when I totally fell in love!! 

And just like that! We’re beach ready - now, bring on summer!!!!

Happy sewing 

T x

A new designer and I finally blogged again - whoot!

Hi Everyone,

I know I've totally dropped the ball on blogging all of my weekly sews, I have no excuse really...

However, I'd love to tell you a little about this debut pattern from Moocuzzi. I've (virtually) known Raquel for quite some time now, we've both been testers on other projects together and so I'm incredibly excited to show you her debut pattern - the Primrose Pinafore.

The low-down: Sizes 0-10 which is a nice big size range, a LOAD of  options - suspender skirt, paperbag waist skirt and pinny with or without flutters.

I made the pinny with flutters - I totally forgot to take a photo of the back stupidly, it's an open back traditional pinafore style and the straps criss cross and tie up in loops on the waistband

I always go by my kids measurements for any pattern, I made a size 3 for my 3 yo and it's a perfect fit. Excellent finishes with all the waist seams and strap seams enclosed - very clever construction and great instructions.

I used this gorgeous small floral print from Dizzy Daisy Fabrics, called Nadia. I think it was perfect for this project and I'd been hoarding it as it's one of my favourites.

And, CUTE!!! Because in my mind - cute is everything!! My poppet decided she HAD to bring a book along to our walk in the "deep, dark, wood" so I figured I'd use it as a photo opportunity ha!

Make sure you join the Pattern Group on Facebook to keep up to date with any future releases.

Happy Sewing
T xx

PS: none of my blog posts contain affiliate links

Sewing Challenge - June extras

When i first started my sewing challenge, I thought I'd struggle to make one new item a month but it seems I've been able to make one new item per week and sometimes even more than one!! The last week of June, I made three new things! The Polly Pinny that I blogged about earlier as well as these two outfits!

First up, I got this divine small floral from Wildflower Fabric Store and I had spotted the CKC Honey's pattern earlier in the week and instantly knew this fabric would be perfect for it!

You really need to go by your childs chest measurements for this one because in spite of the back being time up, you need the front to fit properly for it to not wrinkle too much.

The other thing I would possibly do different next time I make this is change the location of the first loop to just under the arms so there isn't that huge gap where the armhole finishes and the loop starts. I hope that makes sense!

But all in all, it was a reasonably decent fit, there was a little wrinkling on the side. I suspect if you ditched the last 1.5" of the front bodice and made the skirt longer by the same amount, this might fix itself - I'll let you know on the next one I make. 

The next outfit I made was a Marty Hoodie from Issue 11 of One Thimble. My little miss is a skinny little thing and almost never fits store bought properly - if it fits around the chest then it's too short and if it's long enough then it's bulky around the chest and she looks like she's swimming in it! 

Solution? make my own! I also decided to do the Freezer Paper Stencilling from issue 11 - a generous friend cut out the unicorn stencil for me on her scan n cut (which I now NEED!!!) and mailed it to me! Miss almost-five did most of the painting of the unicorn (I tidied up her brush strokes) and this smile was so worth the few minutes of extra work!

Pockets of course were the big win - she loves pockets! 

 And that big hood is perfect for covering her whole head, ears and all!

I thought I'd include some extra pics that I thought were rather cute haha - she grabbed my star wand and decided she'd turn me into a goat....

 I used up some of my precious Tadah Fabric for this because it's so soft and lovely to sew with!

All in all, a very productive week!!

Happy Sewing
T xx